


New Beginnings and Old Faces

by haventacluewhatimdoing



Category: Young Dracula (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, How Do I Tag, M/M, Post-Canon, Post-Season/Series 05
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-25
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:15:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27713267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/haventacluewhatimdoing/pseuds/haventacluewhatimdoing
Summary: What if Vlad had stepped into the sunlight?
Relationships: Robin Branagh/Vladimir Dracula
Comments: 17
Kudos: 17





	1. Look after my brother for me, he's quite incompetent.

**Author's Note:**

> I recently rewatched all of Young Dracula, and needless to say I cried. I forgot how it ended. Personally I had some issues with the finale though. 1. Robin didn't come back (unacceptable) 2. Vlad didn't step into the sunlight.
> 
> So here's a fic to rectify those two things! And I'm a sucker for the best friend-turned-lover trope so I threw that in for good measure.
> 
> Updates will hopefully be regular, but I should really be focusing on my other ongoing fics so we'll have to see.
> 
> I hope you enjoy! Kudos and comments really do make my day, especially as this fandom is pretty small and I don't know how many people will read this :)

Vlad stood at the doorway of the school. Upstairs at this very moment, his friends and family were battling the blood seed, and if he stayed a vampire, then he would be able to help. On the other hand, everything he had ever dreamt of was right in front of him - he only had to take a few steps forward and he would be human.

Vlad took a deep breath, and walked into the courtyard.

~☆~☆~☆~ 

"Robin, love, you're going to be late!" Robin groaned and rolled over on his bed, pulling the duvet over his head. He had never been a morning person, much preferring to wake up at noon and stay up till the early hours of the morning.

"Robin!" Chloe walked into his room and kicked his duvet, waking him up properly. "You have a uni interview, so get up!" Chloe stormed out the door, smoothing her pristine uniform as she went. She was Year 11 now, and taking 12 GCSEs. Robin had gone to college with 7, but it was at least more than Paul and Ian got combined.

He dragged himself out of bed, scrubbing a hand over his face. Sifting through his clothes, trying to find something that wasn't a band t shirt, Robin found a Polaroid stuffed into a pocket in his leather jacket. Frowning, he pulled it out. It was a picture of him, age 12 or 13, with a boy he vaguely recognised. He himself was wearing a vampire cloak, while the other boy was wearing an orange striped shirt and jeans.

He rubbed his thumb over the photo, distant memories stirring at the back of his brain, and turned it over. Scribbled on the back was the date along with a message.

_29th March 2008,  
Me and Robin hiding from the Easter celebrations. _

Robin smiled. He had never enjoyed Easter, too many fluffy bunnies and cute animals for his liking, and clearly the boy in the photo felt the same way. He pocketed the photo, knowing it was important, but not quite remembering why.

"ROBIN!"  
"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming."

~☆~☆~☆~ 

Vlad picked up the cake box containing the blood seed. They had all pulled together to contain it, and Talitha was going to take it up the Himalayas on her next trip.

The Count clapped his hands together.  
"Well, that's that then. I knew you wouldn't step outside, Vladdy." The latter bit his lip.

"Actually, Dad... I did."

~☆~☆~☆~ 

"Thank you, Robin. We will be in touch with our response soon." Robin nodded and stood up, collecting his artwork, before leaving the room. He leant against the wall just outside, sighing deeply. The interview had been one of the most nerve wracking moments of his life, and he had been in a lot of scrapes.

He rounded the corner to see his mum waiting for him. She looked at him expectantly, but Robin simply shrugged back.  
"Do you want some chocolate, cariad?" Robin smiled warmly at his mother, before shaking his head.  
"I'm alright. Could do with a coffee, though." His mum simply smiled knowingly before steering them towards the coffee shop across the road.

~☆~☆~☆~ 

"So... what are you going to do now?" George looked up at Vlad from her seat on the sofa.  
"Live with you, I guess." George squealed excitedly, clapping her hands together.  
"What about the Chosen One? Grand High Vampire?" The Count asked at him, eyebrow arched. Vlad knew he wasn't in his father's good books, now and probably forever.  
"I don't think you need the Chosen One any more. Let Ingrid be Grand High Vampire. And your heir."

Ingrid stared at him in shock. She had tried to kill him multiple times, and now he was giving her the highest position in the vampire world? But Vlad simply nodded at her.  
"I know you've tried to kill me before, but only because of the titles I was given. I never wanted them. You should have been heir from the moment you were born." Ingrid smiled, her eyes watering.

Renfield walked in, wearing a hat with corks on.  
"And we're off to Australia!" He exclaimed gleefully. Vlad still didn't understand why his father wanted to live in the land of sun and sand, but who was he to judge?

He moved towards Ingrid, and brought her into a firm hug.  
"I know I haven't always been the best to you," she whispered in his ear, and he chuckled.  
"Understatement of the year."  
"Ssh, I'm trying to apologise here. I just wanted to say... you're a good person. And although I usually despise that in people, it suits you." She pulled back slightly.  
"I love you, little brother." Vlad smiled softly.  
"I love you too, big sis." Ingrid pulled a stern face.  
"Never call me that again." They both laughed, clinging to each other.

~☆~☆~☆~ 

"You'll come and visit?" George asked.  
"When I'm over here for business, of course." Ingrid squatted down to her level. "You look after my brother for me, he's quite incompetent." George beamed back at her.  
"You bet." Ingrid stood back up to look Vlad in the eye.  
"Write, yeah?" He asked.  
"Ugh, so demanding." She rolled her eyes. Vlad shook his head, chuckling. He looked up to come face to face with his father.

"So, this is it." The Count said to him.  
"Yes."  
"I... well, I never thought things would turn out like this." The Count paused. "But you were always a rubbish vampire."  
"And this is supposed to make me feel happy how...?"  
"Hush, I'm getting there. You never had an interest in biting, or wearing capes, or carrying on the Dracula name. And as much as it pains me to say it, I think you made the right decision." He awkwardly patted Vlad's shoulder.  
"Thanks, Dad."

"Have fun, Master Vlad." Renfield nodded at him. Vlad returned the gesture. He looked over at Talitha, who was loitering in the corner. He walked over to her.  
"Do something good with your life, Vlad." She told him, serious.  
"Will do. You look after yourself, yeah?"  
"I'm not the one who needs looking after." She cracked a small smile.

Vlad approached the door, where Sally and George were standing.  
"So this is goodbye."  
"Not forever though!" George piped up from beside him. Vlad smiled, before pressing gently against the door. Sunlight poured in, making the vampires move away. Sally and George went through first. Vlad followed, but just before he closed the door, he turned round and raised a hand in farewell. The others raised a hand in return, and Vlad nodded before pulling the door shut.

He wiped tears from his eyes as he sat down in the taxi. George turned to him.  
"Are you not happy, Vlad?" She asked.  
"Of course I am. I just... it's bittersweet." Sally turned to look at him from the front passenger seat, and smiled knowingly.

His family had always been annoying, but he had spent his whole life with them. It would be weird not waking up to the slam of coffin lids and Ingrid screeching at his father. But there was a new life ahead of him, and he was ready for it.


	2. Your favourite.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Robin and Vlad discover things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chap is very very short, apologies.

Robin's mum screamed excitedly, hugging him tightly.  
"I knew you'd do it!" She exclaimed. Robin patted her on the back, shaking his head in amusement. They stepped away from each other, and his mum handed him a bar of chocolate.  
"Your favourite," she smiled, as Robin looked down at the Yorkie in his hands. He flashed her a grin before making his way up to his bedroom.

He was looking forward to going to university, starting afresh. Despite moving to college, lots of people still knew him from school, and he was once again labelled the 'freak'. He'd also come out as openly gay, which meant some less than kind words were thrown at him.

He flicked through one of his old horror magazines, wondering if it was finally time to get rid of the mound of them in the corner of his room, when he found a note lodged into the back cover. He pulled it out, confused, and unfolded it.

_Robin,  
By the time you're reading this, I'll be long gone. You probably won't even remember who I am. But we spent two years together. You were my best mate. And if you do remember at any point, I wanted to say I'm sorry._

_V.D_

Robin frowned. He knew he had a good mate back when he was 13, but be didn't know what his name was, or what he was apologising for in the note. He'd simply moved: it wasn't exactly his fault.

Robin shrugged, placing it in a wooden box beside his bed. He'd started collating all the bits and pieces he found about the boy he clearly spent a lot of time with as a young teen. It puzzled him that he couldn't remember much, but he was sure there was a reason, and with enough objects his memory would be jogged.

"Robin, we have the names of your roommates!"

~☆~☆~☆~ 

"Vlad, you got in!" Sally yelled from the bottom of the stairs. The teen appeared at the top of the stairs, smiling. Although he had no education, Ingrid had managed to forge some qualification papers for him.  
('A little present. Have fun with the breathers' read the note)

"They've told us who your flatmates are as well, if you want to have a look." His mum added. Vlad nodded and descended the stairs, gently plucking the paper from her hands. He scanned the page, term starts on 6th September, et cetera...

He froze as he reached the names of his roommates. He momentarily forgot how to breathe, which was more of a problem than it used to be. Sally rested a hand on his shoulder.  
"Vlad, love?" She asked gently. "Everything okay?" He nodded mutely, not taking his eyes off the paper. There was one name in particular on the paper that made him freeze. A name he never thought he would see again.

Robin Branagh.


	3. Bagsy I get that room!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vlad and Robin start uni and meet each other for the first time for 4 years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, I ain't dead!
> 
> Felt like writing a modern fic today, so another chapter up for you lot!
> 
> I'm flattered by the two bookmarks, thank you.

"Welcome to City university. I know you have all been given the grand tour, and the finer details are in your welcome pack. But I'd like to say a few words..."

Vlad tuned out the 'motivational speech' from the drab middle aged man on the stage and instead scanned the hall nervously. He knew who he was looking for, but it had been 4 years, and who knew what he would look like now. Since Vlad had got his reflection back, he barely recognised himself.

Having no luck, he sighed quietly and slumped in his chair. He didn't know what the rush was - after all, he'd be sharing a flat with him in a mere two hours.

The minutes seemed to pass by both too slowly and not slow enough. Vlad thought about stopping time momentarily to collate his thoughts, before remembering that he couldn't do that anymore. It was odd. He'd never wanted or cherished his powers, but sometimes he missed them. He'd forgotten how long it takes to walk anywhere, and small things like turning the lights on took so much more effort.

A round of applause made him look up from where he was picking the threads of the chair seat. The man on the stage seemed to have finished, judging by the bow he was making. Vlad tapped his fingers together politely, but his mind wasn't in the room.

"Now, you all know your addresses. There are meeting points for all the flats outside, stand in your designated area and your flatmates should be with you sooner or later." The man dismissed the students, the vast majority of whom stood up quickly, eager to meet their new roommates. Vlad found himself dragging his feet, despite being full of nervous energy.

Making his way to the sign that said 13 (how ironic), Vlad stopped in the middle of the room, earning irritated grumbles from those right behind him.

Leaning against the wall, was his best mate. He had grown a lot taller, Vlad still being fairly short for an 18 year old. The teenager was wearing a pair of tight black jeans along with an Iron Maiden t-shirt and a leather jacket. His hands were in the pockets of the latter, and he looked throughly bored.

Vlad stopped breathing momentarily. A problem he didn't use to have, but now his lungs were screaming for oxygen, and so he gulped a large breath of air. Didn't want his first impression to be him fainting, after all.

Taking one final deep breath, he walked slowly towards the other man, deciding to lean against the wall next to him.  
"Hey," he said.  
"Hi," Vlad responded.  
"You in my flat?"  
"Yep. Vlad Count." Vlad extended his hand to meet the other's in a firm handshake.  
"Robin Branagh. Your name sounds familiar, have we met before?"  
"Possibly."

Vlad bit his lip. He really didn't know how the memory wipe had worked on Robin - the optimistic part of him had hoped it had worn off, while the more rational part of his brain knew that it would still be in place, and without his vampire powers, Vlad was unable to remove it.

Robin shrugged, and removed his hand from Vlad's grasp.  
"Right, to fill you in, I'm an art student, I love my rock music, and I'm gay. Any problems?" Robin raised an eyebrow, almost challenging him to make a comment. Vlad swallowed thickly.  
"No. No problems at all." Robin nodded, a slight smile crossing his face.

"Alright, I've done me, how about you?"  
"Right, uh, I'm studying Romanian and East European Studies, um, that’s all there is to me, really." Vlad mentally punched himself. He couldn't think of any hobbies or interests on the spot - his life had been pretty focused on Grand High Vampire and all that.

Robin frowned at this.  
"Come on, there's gotta be more to you than that! What music do you like?"  
"Uh... I don't really listen to music." Vlad rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. He hadn't really had time to educate himself on the current pop culture - George had done her best, but she'd only had 3 weeks.

"Oh move over! No music interest at all? Na, you've gotta be joking." Robin shook his head at him.  
"Really wish I was," Vlad muttered.

Ten minutes later, they'd met their other roommate - a girl called Ivy, with flaming red hair and wearing a medieval style corset with a long flowing skirt. She'd quickly introduced herself - Vlad learned that she was a Medieval History student, which explained the clothes, she had a sibling called Lotus, and she originally came from Ireland, although her family moved to London when she was six.

Together they made their way to the flat - all of them had dumped their belongings earlier that day, but had yet to sort out everything. As Robin turned the key in the lock, Ivy yelled,  
"Bagsy I get that room!" She rushed into the flat and straight into the bedroom nearest the door.

Robin and Vlad looked at each other, but the former just shrugged. Vlad could tell Ivy was eccentric, but then, all the best people were. She was going to be great fun to be around.

The taller man picked up his stuff and said,  
"I'll take this one, unless you have any preferences?" He gestured to the door furthest from Ivy, leaving Vlad the bedroom in the middle.  
"No, yeah, sure, no problem." Vlad kicked himself internally for stumbling over his words. He was a cool vampire, wasn't he? Well, not vampire anymore. But he had cool, right? Definitely did.

However, as he watched Robin walk into his new bedroom, Vlad was starting to doubt that he would ever be as cool as his former best friend.

Oh, and the slight crush he appeared to have gained wouldn't help things either.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I searched up Romanian degrees on a uni finder thingy, found that one and thought it suited Vlad.


End file.
